I fear that I may have to speed these book reviews up even more – or perhaps I’ll squeeze a few extra into this post to catch me up to the end of 2024 at least, do you think we can do it? I’ve actually managed to cover a few that I read in this batch in my post all about new romantasies that you need to read in 2025, so luckily I’m ahead on that count as they don’t need another post!
*Thank you to Netgalley, the publishers and the authors for advance copies of the books marked with asterixes.
Witchcraft for Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix* – 8.5/10
This is a stunner of a book! It’s my first by Grady Hendrix so I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I now have a big list of his fiction (called “lies” on his website!) on my TBR.
It’s witchy and feminist and addictive. It was an excellent read in a dark and stormy November, but honestly, I would pick it up any night of the year.
Set in Florida in the 1970, “Fern” is a pregnant teen who has been given a fake name at a home for wayward girls. I love the setting of the hot, humid and atmospheric setting of Florida’s swamps already, and the oppressed teen girls just adds to this vibe. Then you get a witch. Yep, that’s right! A mobile librarian seduces the girls into witchcraft which they readily accept in an attempt to free themselves from the situations they’ve found themselves in.
I absolutely sped through this, it was addictive. I’m not the biggest fan of the childbirth portions (pregnant women, especially if it’s your first, please don’t read this!) because they’re depicted as something entirely different from my own experiences – one of which was amazing, the other not so much, but wasn’t anything like this. But they’re also wonderfully graphic (in the best way!) and show the terror that the teenage girls would have felt. I’m personally just not a fan of the way that the media depicts birth as a screaming, world-ending kind of experience when it usually isn’t! This is an excellent read though and I would highly recommend it.
Beautiful Ugly by Alice Feeney* – 8/10
I was prepared to give this 4 stars for probably 75% of the book – a really good read but not hitting excellent. The last part turned from slow chill into fast paced thrill and pushed it up to 5 stars for me.
An author calls his wife driving home to give her some exciting news, but as he talks to her, she gets out of the car and…disappears. A year later, with never a sign of her again, trying to rebuild his life, he travels to a remote island to attempt to revive his writing career. It’s only here where it would be near impossible that he spots her again. But that can’t be true, can it?
The twists, to be expected of course, were a little on the farfetched side, however it does mean that the reader is very unlikely to guess them through the book. There was a final little addition that had me flicking back to the start which I loved – a fun touch! This is already a popular book for the year and I can see why. It’s got the Gone Girl element that everyone tries to capture, and it does a good job of it. Definite recommendation from me.
The Villa by Jess Ryder* – 6.5/10
This was a quick, fun read – lighthearted in many ways, in spite of the subject matter!
4 women went on a hen party to a villa in Spain, but only 3 of them returned. Now those 3 are returning to the scene of the crime, one determined to remember the night in question to help to come to peace with the murder of their hen.
Obviously this is a book full of secrets and lies. It’s pretty obvious that there is more to the story than the break-in gone wrong crime that the police decided on.
The characters are great and the storyline is fast moving enough to keep you intrigued. The big reveal wasn’t entirely what I expected, but wasn’t too far off, but the red herrings throughout will keep you guessing.
It would make a great summer read, easy to speed through to find out what really happened.
Flock by Kate Stewart – 6.5/10
Okay, so where do I go with this review?! I’ll be honest, this was recommended alongside romantasies that I’d picked up lately, so I added it to my list. When I spotted it was free on Amazon Prime for a limited time, I snapped it up and went into it thinking I was getting something like ACOTAR.
Yeh, it’s not that! It was recommended alongside these for those that are looking for more of the spice rather than the fantasy of these books, which is great, there’s absolutely a market for that and this isn’t to say I didn’t like it, because I’m planning to read the next one, so I think that tells you that I liked it enough. But it took me at least three quarters of the book to realise that the men in it weren’t in fact going to turn into ravens or something at some point – my fault!
So like I said, this was a good read with a quick and easy flow. It was a romance with a twist and quite a high spice level. I’d recommend it if that’s your thing, and I’ll be reading the next in the series at some point.
Never Lie by Freida McFadden – 6.5/10
I’ve already read and enjoyed a couple of Freida McFadden’s books, so I knew I would like this one.
A young couple gets stuck during a snowstorm in a remote house that they’re supposed to be viewing. It’s not just any old house though, it’s an illustrious, and kind of creepy, manor belonging to a famed psychiatrist who disappeared a few years ago. The woman, Tricia, discovers a secret stash of tapes which she realises slowly reveal the truth of what happened.
This was a good read, but wasn’t anything amazing. The storyline and twists, while fun, were either a little predictable or a little farfetched, but it did have me hooked with its short chapters interspersed with transcripts of recordings. I read it pretty quickly and would recommend it, but I don’t think it’ll be among my top McFadden books – I have more to read in future!
The Daughter by T. M. Logan – 7/10*
Wow, this was a super fast paced thrilling read full of twists! I’ve never read a T. M. Logan book before, but this type of mystery thriller is one of my favourite genres – ever since the Gone Girl hype many years ago, I’m always searching for one that blows my head off in the same way and is just as gripping.
Lauren is a single mum with daughter in her first term at uni and preteen son at school. The book opens with her heading to collect her daughter from her halls after not seeing her during her entire first term, but when she knocks on her door, an unfamiliar boy answers saying he knows nothing about her daughter, Evie. Campus security do what they can, and police are little help, so Lauren sets off on a journey of her own to figure out exactly where her daughter has gone. But as you might expect, it’s not at all straight forward and becomes far more deadly and dangerous than a normal mum might ever imagine.
From the very first chapter, I was addicted to this story. I read it in two nights, finishing it at midnight on the second night as I realised I couldn’t put it down when I was so close to the big reveal. The big reveal, however, was definitely not what I was expecting – it was one of those “I can’t believe I didn’t consider that option!” moments where I’m annoyed at myself for not figuring it all out, but also so pleased that the author pulled the wool over my eyes as it makes for such an enjoyable read.
The characters were great – very realistic and easy to understand their motivations, no matter how sometimes twisted they were. I liked how there were a few chapters from Evie’s point of view back in time interspersed throughout the novel to give a little more context to the background but without revealing too much too soon.
I wouldn’t put this among my favourites this year, but I really enjoyed the ride and wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it.
The Ghostwriter of Christmas Past by Amber Eve – 9/10
This was my first time reading a Christmas book at…well, Christmas time! That sounds silly, but it’s something I’m trying to do – fit with the seasons to feel all festive and all that. And after this read, I’m definitely going to keep doing it.
This was a very cute festive romance, with a nice little mystery from the past mixed in. Very much Hallmark movie, but I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, there’s a reason those are so popular!
The fact I devoured this book in a single day says a lot about it too I think!
I read Laurie Gilmore’s The Christmas Tree Farm immediately after this one (see below!) and enjoyed them both equally as much – if you liked that one, you’re going to enjoy this too! Although here you’ve got cute village in the UK rather than small town US which gives similar vibes in a different setting.
As with all Amber’s books, the characters are on point. I can always imagine myself really interacting with her characters, they’re as real as your own friends and family.
Definitely recommend this one, get it on your Christmas list for next year!
The Christmas Tree Farm by Laurie Gilmore – 8.5/10
After reading autumn themed books in autumn, I had to try out reading Christmas books at Christmas – and this one certainly doesn’t let you down!
These Laurie Gilmore cutesy seasonal romances are pretty much exactly what you’d think from looking at the cover, albeit with a little more spice than they suggest. I loved reading this during the right season for that festive mood, and honestly, I can’t really fault it that much. It’s of course formulaic like a Hallmark movie, but sometimes that’s what you want!
The Dream Harbour world makes for a cute escape from reality and I was happy to dive back into it. I’m looking forward to the other books set in this world.
